Entry #6: The 'Greyhound Shift': "The public can no longer
just leave the driving to us," superintendent says.



Taunton, MA -- Greetings from the Colonies! After teaching middle school U.S. History for years, I will actually get to see Plymouth Rock, the Mayflower replica and all of the places I've read about in Boston. Besides "leaf peeping," our family hopes to hit all of those major historical sites and more.

The first hint we had that we were far from Minnesota were the roads. Just look at a US map and you'll see the difference. NOTHING is straight here. Yes, they will get you north and south, east and west, but they wind ALL over. Of course, for those of you who live in older communities like Taunton, you know that most roads were developed from early trails. Here, those paths connected mills, farms and settlements. This is quite a contrast from the plotted-out homestead roads we left in southwest Minnesota.

And the roads are not all that is different here.

It seems that while the parents of Taunton may value education (at a 3 to 1 ratio, according to Asst. Superintendent Don Cleary), they haven't shown it in their actions, especially at the middle school level. Traditionally, this community has been a blue-collar industrial area with a low percentage of post-high school degrees and very little involvement in their children's education. That had been good enough in the past, but it may not be good enough today. Along with the rest of the state, Taunton faces rising state standards and mandatory testing -- here called the MCAS. The business community has changed and with it the need for a more highly skilled work force.

So, several years ago (1991-92) a group of administrators, staff, and community representatives met to devise a program "to promote increased academic achievement through enhanced parent/family and community involvement." Project B.E.S.T. was created and prompted our visit to New England. Building Educational Success Together has not revolutionized education here, but it has helped facilitate changes on all levels. With the assistance of Joyce Epstein and the National Network of Partnership Schools, the district has developed a framework through which each school can work and determine their particular type and level of involvement.

The three specific areas that I will investigate further include parent volunteering, homework completion, and business partnerships -- all subjects of interest to most school districts in America.

With a total population of around 52,000 (and growing), Taunton is similar to my home district in many aspects. I see the same parental desire to see their children succeed and the same shortage of skills and knowledge to make that happen. School attitudes are another area of shared concern. In the words of Supt. Dr. Gerald Croteau, the district is undergoing the "Greyhound Shift" where the public can no longer just "leave the driving to us."

Our boys want to attend Martin Middle School, so we will attempt to blend into this community and find out how things are going. First, we have to be able to find our way around here and get to the school. I can't tell you how many times we've been lost so far. With several weekend trips planned around New England, I'm afraid we'll be facing more wrong turns. (See Corrine's e-mail below.)

From somewhere in Massachusetts,

Darrell


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Excerpt from Corrine's
E-mail to friends back home

Taunton, MA -- We made it to community number 3 -- whew, what a distance. We've traveled 8,791 miles total. The personality here is a bit "cool," as they say. The people warm up to you once you start talking, but at first they look like they might bite.

Walking into the library you would have thought I was asking for a million dollars instead of wanting to use the computer. Being the tactful person I am, I just about told her what I thought until Darrell stepped in with his graciousness and got us a library card.

The boys seem to want to jump in and attend the school full-time. Some interesting rules of this school include no backpacks during school, no coats (all the classrooms can be reached from the inside), and no hats of any kind. The coats stem from the Columbine incident. The backpacks are for posture and hats out of respect. This school is also 5th through 8th grade.

The boys were welcomed -- they started school this week and ran in the cross country meet. I think Okabena has helped them with their readiness to jump right in. I am up to 5 different phone cards and I have added yet another grocery card to the collection for the savings I will have. The accent is real funny. The kids are going to "Maa-in" (Martin) school. Tyler got his first locker. You could hear him practicing this morning: "Hi I'm Tyler."

Til next time, wave at a friend.

Corinne